The San Antonio Spurs (2-1) will wrap up a back-to-back set Monday at Madison Square Garden, taking on the New York Knicks (2-1).
After beating the Boston Celtics 95-87 on Monday, the Spurs enter Monday's matchup riding a two-game winning streak. More importantly, it seems that big-ticket offseason acquisition is beginning to get comfortable in his new surroundings, as he's coming off his best performance of the season. He ripped the Celtics for 24 points and 14 rebounds, showing that he can still carry the load on one of the league's deepest rosters. In addition to Aldridge's exploits, the veteran Spurs also made some impressive NBA history on Sunday, as it was the 541st career victory together for the trio of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu Ginobili. They surpassed former Celtics greats Larry Bird, Robert Parish, and Kevin McHale for most wins by three teammates.
The Knicks aren't in the Spurs' class, but may be starting to change the outside perception of the team based on their first three games of the season. They've already knocked off two playoff clubs from last season in the Milwaukee Bucks and Washington Wizards, and were competitive in an 11-point loss to the Atlanta Hawks. A healthy Carmelo Anthony has been the driving force of the team's attack thus far, averaging 24.3 points per game, 11 more than anybody else on the team. Even so, the Knicks appear to have more depth than in seasons past, as all of Derrick Williams, Langston Galloway, Lance Thomas, and Kyle O'Quinn are averaging more than nine points per contest, despite not having started a single game.
